The return of Petra’s Pantyhose Parade. Tight spots.

I have much love for Wolford. Supreme sorcerers of sheer, titans of tights, these mad Austrian alchemists routinely, ceaselessly turn mere Lycra, Nylon and Elastine into the very stuff of leggy dreams and ask only for vast sums of my hard earned money in return for their valiant efforts. In truth, they don’t even ask, indeed, barely raising an eyebrow to somehow wordlessly compel the pennies from my purse.

Bless their Edelweiss garlanded hearts.

The Wolford Annual Summer sale is over and shelf space has been cleared for the beguiling Fall/Winter collection. The ready-to-wear line is out of reach to me so long as my negotiations with the International Monetary Fund for a massive capital infusion remain stalled. My recent adoption of an all cereal diet however made it possible for me to justify the purchase one pair of tights from the new releases just in time for my own Fall/Winter chrysalis, the end of the Summer Drabbatical and the fully feathered return of Petra (ta-Da).

Meet Leo. Hot you say? Yes, indeed, and in more ways then one.

You see, the Leopard pattern effect (Jaguar? Cheetah? Ocelot?? ... somebody help me out here...) is quite substantial. It is not painted on or woven seamlessly in. It has the hand feel of a flocked velvet burn out and sits in slight, tangible relief from the sturdy, semi-opaque base fabric. I suspect that this 50% polyester construction is an engineering necessity. In order for the jungle beast pattern to keep shape and appear proportional on the leg, a base fibre that maintains structural integrity is required. And from an engineering perspective, dear friends, it works. The pattern lays perfectly on the leg. They look smashing. Truly.

But back to the whole hot thing. The nylon simply does not vent heat or wick moisture. They look “hot” yes, and they feel it too.

This represents a real departure from prior joyful and loving experiences with Wolford. Typically, Wolford feel like magic. Typically, how the Wolford look (as good as they look) seems to me a secondary consideration. Typically, when wearing Wolford, you really don’t give a damn what the rest of the world thinks. Wolfords are all about you.

Gliding in to a pair of Wolford’s is very much the hosiery equivalent of Alice and her fabled looking glass. One falls into a new world, a very immersive realm of the senses, particularly the sense of touch. A lovely spot to visit. Inside a pair of Leo’s however, one does not, and cannot pierce the looking glass. What is in the mirror looks great, but Alice does not get her boarding pass for the flight to Wonderland.

With that said, they are built to endure, this Queen of the Jungle will prowl all night, and no doubt hold form for years. All of the fabled care in manufacture one expects from Wolford is there. Well reinforced at the toe and cupped at the heel they are built to avoid pre-game blowouts. The boot portion is expertly graduated and adheres superbly to the leg. There is a strong bias in the weave against over-stretching. The wide, comfortable and perfectly finished waistband sits snugly and stays exactly where told.

They are available in a variety of color combinations, including black on black, black on fern (pictured top), and your correspondents pick, black on ecru (pictured with their soul mate skirt at right). If you prefer a thigh high to tights, Wolford has you covered. If your toes are simply too divine to not have on display, a footless legging is yours for the taking too.

If you do splash out on Leos ($65.00), I salute you. You are treating yourself well. Do me a small favor though and drop me a line when you are planning on wearing them out. Two of us in the same room would be a bit much. I want to avoid cat fights wherever possible.

Closing now on a personal note today, I am off to start a couple of weeks of vacation. I will be elsewhere (a very beautiful elsewhere) but I am mostly going to be off the digital grid. See you in September…